Aw hell, lambikins, it's the least we could do! And on kind of the same subject, I decided to make some beef stew in the pressure cooker last night. I had forgotten how afraid of the p.c. I am! I know the newer ones are safer than the ones my granny had, but there's still a little anxiety whenever I cook in it! I thought about you and the grill, which then reminded me of something else. When I was about 15 years old, I tried to start our gas grill for the first time ever. Well, this was in the mid 70's, and my hair was down to my butt and about as far out to the sides. While I was trying to light the grill, a lot of gas escaped, and I guess it kind of hung out in my hair, and when it finally lit, there was a big WHOOSH fireball! It was gone so fast that it didn't even singe my eyebrows, but I'm a little leery about lighting grills anymore. In fact, I've decided that I prefer the charcoal ones anyway.
Oh, the dangers of cooking!

Hey, what's this? A wonderful new thread on my favorite topic of all: food! Great idea, lambikins & crew--looks I have a lot to catch up on since I've been away, but knowing you all, I won't regret wading through the pages.

Originally Posted by ElizabethG

I feel a little intimidated to even be posting in this thread because I am definitely not a cook! However, I have a question for you real cooks (and by the way, I've already printed out about 5 of ya'lls recipes just to experiment some and see if I can do it, so thanks).

Oh, ElizabethG, let me tell you, I used to be the type of person about whom friends would say, "The best thing she can make for dinner is reservations." Dinner at my place used to mean calling for delivery; then luckily I married a someone who is a wonderful cook (Coincidence? You decide. ). However, because I love food, I always wanted to learn to cook myself, and finally, thanks to the FoRT Foodies here, I gained the confidence and know-how to actually make things. Edible things! Scrumptious things that people didn't choke on! The people who know me in RL are stunned, and somewhat plumper. Anyhoo, this is my long-winded way of saying don't be shy to participate in this thread and ask these people any questions. I really don't think I'd be cooking the way I am now if it weren't for them.

To answer your question, if I want to cut some calories, I sometimes use a natural sweetener called Stevia in lieu of Splenda (which I've heard is fine, but I still get scared of something I perceive as an "artificial sweetener"--that's just me), but I always mix it with some real sugar (1:1) if I'm using it to bake, so that whatever chemical reaction needs to take place to give it that yummy, fluffy baked texture can happen.

Lately, I have been on a real crazy flaxseed kick, since a health nut friend of mine gave me a box of milled flaxseed. Flaxseed is high in fiber and contains Omega 3's and lignans and is said to lower cholestoral, prevent cancer and heart disease, aid metabolism and digestion, even improve skin and hair and slow the aging process. I don't know about all of that, but in the time I've been eating it daily (mixing it in cereal or yogurt), I've felt great, and I really do enjoy its flavor and have been on the hunt down for more ways to incorporate it into my diet. Does anyone else here use flaxseed or flaxseed oil?

Hey, what's this? A wonderful new thread on my favorite topic of all: food! Great idea, lambikins & crew--looks I have a lot to catch up on since I've been away, but knowing you all, I won't regret wading through the pages.

Snowy's here! Snowy's here! I'm so glad that you popped in and found your way here.

Originally Posted by SnowflakeGirl

Oh, ElizabethG, let me tell you, I used to be the type of person about whom friends would say, "The best thing she can make for dinner is reservations." Dinner at my place used to mean calling for delivery; then luckily I married a someone who is a wonderful cook (Coincidence? You decide. ). However, because I love food, I always wanted to learn to cook myself, and finally, thanks to the FoRT Foodies here, I gained the confidence and know-how to actually make things. Edible things! Scrumptious things that people didn't choke on! The people who know me in RL are stunned, and somewhat plumper. Anyhoo, this is my long-winded way of saying don't be shy to participate in this thread and ask these people any questions. I really don't think I'd be cooking the way I am now if it weren't for them.

You hit it right on the head, Snowy. I've learned so much from the various cooking threads we've got going at FoRT. I'm glad that we can share all our various stories, knowledge and new finds.

Flaxseed oil and Flaxseeds...huh. Never heard a thing about them, not even from my Sweetie's nutso roomate who is allergic to everything on the Planet...and we have to hear about it all. However, I'm intrigued by all the testaments that you've given the seeds/oils and want to scamper over to the store to buy some.

Here's a recipe for banana bread that I found for you and some links; I felt it was in keeping with all the recipes that have been taunting me for days!

BANANA BREAD WITH FLAX SEED

Banana Bread
“One of my favorite childhood memories is the delicious smell of my mother’s banana bread as it baked. I’ve made a few minor changes to my mom’s original recipe, and I hope your family likes it as much as mine does.”
-Jane Reinhardt-Martin, RD, LD.

Preheat oven to 350 F.
In large bowl, mix flour, flax, sugar, baking powder, and salt together.
In food processor or bowl, mash bananas. Then add eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla, and mix in well together.
Mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients just until moistened.
Fold in chopped nuts.
Coat 8 ½ by 4 ½ inch loaf pan with non-stick spray.
Pour batter in loaf pan. Bake for about 50-55 minutes until dark brown, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan on a rack for at least 10-15 minutes before unmolding to cool completely on the rack.
Preparation time: 15 minutes

Snowy, my brother and most of my aunts in Texas are flaxseed obsessed. They know where to get the best prices on the stuff, but I'm not sure how they injest it. I might have to get some recipes from you to share with them!

Life imitates THIS thread

I was just watching the 11:00 am news and the upcoming announcement said, "Stay tuned for the new Off Broadway Hit: Cookin'!

So naturally, I stayed tuned! If any of you are around Chicago, the play is going on at the Chicago Theatre until January 23rd and apparently it's still playing in New York, too.

I hope to go; I'm going to call for ticket prices and see availability.

Here's the description of the play; I checked reviews from normal people and those that wrote them had a blast! Apparently, it's very interactive so if you want to particate, you ask to sit in the first 10 rows.

Description: "Charged with preparing an entire wedding banquet in just one hour, four chefs begin a manic menu of non-stop, high-speed action that whips up into a delicious all you-can-eat buffet of infectious rhythms. Every utensil becomes an ingredient in their recipe for heart-pounding traditional Korean samulnori drumming, spiced up with a dash of modern rock and a pinch of jazz. In their distracted frenzy, the cooks pound knives against giant wooden cutting boards, spewing shredded veggies across the stage. They joust, kung-fu style, with broomsticks. They juggle fruit, fling plates like Frisbees and mix the audience into their antics."

Good luck to you in these forays and keep letting us know how you're doing with flax in your life. You've piqued my curiosity.

Thanks for the recipe and those links, Lambi! I love banana bread so I'm sure to try my hand at that. I've definitely noticed some immediate improvements since I've been getting my daily dose of flaxseed (just 1-3 tbsp is the recommended amount, so it's not hard too manage, and again, it's not gross, I sincerely like the taste)--but I don't want to bore or overshare in the fun foodie thread, so pm me if you'd like to know.

Originally Posted by Terrific Texicana

Snowy, my brother and most of my aunts in Texas are flaxseed obsessed. They know where to get the best prices on the stuff, but I'm not sure how they injest it. I might have to get some recipes from you to share with them!

That would be awesome, Texie. Maybe it's a Texan thing, as the box was given to me by a friend out there in Texas. She's recently been working on re-tooling her diet and lost a ton of weight (slowly, healthily--no fad diets) and really sold me on flaxseed--particularly as I have had high cholestoral since COLLEGE (all that fast food--see why it's good to know to cook for yourself?). I did read articles about the bennies of flaxseed in health/organic living mags out here in Cali for a couple of years, but just never had the wherewithal to go out and buy a box myself.

Just one more thing...Note to people who'd like to try it: you get the most benefit out of flaxseed if you eat the milled/ground version, as the skin of the seed (looks like sesame) is not soluble and the goodness is in its oil. You can even buy flaxseed oil, which is fine, but I like the fiber I get from the ground meal.

1. Put oven to heat to 425 F (225 C)
2. Dice tomatoes to fairly small cubes, chop basil fine, and mix together. Spice with salt, sugar and pepper. Put the tomato/basil micture on top of brie.
3. Bake in the oven for about 8-10 minutes. You might want to test with a small brie first the time in your own oven. It's pretty precise when the Brie has melted just right. And hey, many tries won't hurt, one can never have too much brie
4. Serve fresh from oven with thin (water) crackers.

My uncle also has a good and simple Baked Brie variation that I just love: he takes a nice brie and covers it with brown sugar, dried cranberries, and walnuts then bakes till ooey-gooey and serves with crusty baguette. Oh man, now I'm dying for some!!

In a large, glass, measuring cup, combine the sugar, syrup, salt, butter, and vanilla. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Stir and cook for 2 minutes. Add the baking soda and stir well (mixture will foam).

Combine the popcorn and peanuts in a large brown paper bag. Pour the syrup into the bag and stir to coat. Turn the bag under to close and microwave on high for 1 minute.

Transfer the caramel corn mixture to a baking sheet lined with waxed paper to cool. Store in an airtight container until ready to serve.